Environmentally controlled storage facility for potatoes and other crops

ABSTRACT

Facilities for storing large quantities of potatoes, other tubers, vegetables, produce, and/or other crops are disclosed herein. In one embodiment, a facility configured in accordance with the present technology circulates air from a pile of potatoes into one or more ceiling cavities above the potatoes to warm ceiling panels. Aspects of this embodiment can reduce undesirable water formation on the potatoes.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S) INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

The present application claims the benefit of and priority to U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 61/852,065, filed on Mar. 15, 2013,and entitled “ENVIRONMENTALLY CONTROLLED STORAGE FACILITY FOR POTATOESAND OTHER CROPS,” which is incorporated herein in its entirety byreference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The following disclosure relates generally to facilities, systems andassociated methods for storing potatoes and other tubers, crops, produceand the like.

BACKGROUND

Potatoes and other tubers, vegetables, crops and produce are typicallyheld in large storage facilities after harvest to maintain quality andprovide a uniform supply of product to market. Modern potato storagefacilities, for example, can often hold more than 20,000 tons ofpotatoes in piles as high as 20 feet. These piles, however, can generateconsiderable heat from respiration of the potatoes. One ton of storedpotatoes, for example, can generate about 2 BTUs of heat per day. Forthis reason, conventional storage facilities typically includeventilation systems for cooling the potatoes. In addition, thesefacilities typically include systems for controlling the air temperatureand humidity to prevent excessive dehydration, decay, and thedevelopment of high sugar concentrations in the potatoes. Tablepotatoes, for example, are typically stored at about 40°-45° F. andabout 95% relative humidity, while potatoes for making chips or Frenchfries are typically stored at about 45-55° F. and about 95% relativehumidity. Maintaining the humidity in potato storage facilities at,e.g., above 90% can significantly reduce shrinkage and correspondingprofit losses.

Conventional potato storage facilities typically include a series ofvents or other openings on an exterior wall for introducing outside airinto the facility. This air can be cooled and/or conditioned to increasethe moisture content by moving the air through an air cooler (e.g., anevaporative cooler), a humidifier, and/or other known air conditioningdevices, and then directed through a series of ventilation ducts orpipes that extend underneath the pile of potatoes. The ducts areperforated along their lengths to allow the cool, moist air to flow outand upwardly through the potatoes, cooling the potatoes and preventingexcessive dehydration. The air is warmed as it flows through thepotatoes, and after flowing through the pile it is typically exhaustedthrough one or more vents in an exterior wall of the facility.

Although it can be important to maintain stored potatoes in a humidenvironment to reduce shrinkage, it is also desirable to keep thepotatoes dry to reduce the formation of rot. One challenge associatedwith conventional potato storage facilities, however, is that inrelatively moderate or cool climates the heated and humid air rising offthe pile of potatoes can condense on ceiling panels above the potatoes.This can happen when, for example, the outside air temperature is lowenough to cool the ceiling panels below the dew point of the air insidethe facility. The condensation on the ceiling panels can form waterdroplets that fall onto the potatoes, inducing rot.

Some conventional storage facilities have attempted to address thecondensation problem by heating the ceiling surfaces above the dew pointwith warm air from conventional gas, oil or electric heating sources.This approach, however, adds cost for operating and maintaining theheating equipment. Other storage facilities attempt to thermallyinsulate the ceiling panels by covering them with insulation, such asspray-on urethane insulation. Over time, however, the insulation candegrade and crack, allowing moisture to form. Moreover, the insulationmay off-gas or otherwise deteriorate over time, raising concerns aboutproduct contamination. Because of the difficulties and/or cost ofimplementing conventional techniques for reducing water formation, somestorage facility operators have simply resorted to reducing the humidityof the cooling air to avoid condensation. But reducing the humidity canlead to the undesirable result of potato dehydration and shrinkage, witha corresponding reduction in yield and lost profits.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1A, 1B and 1C are side, front and rear elevation views,respectively, of a crop storage facility configured in accordance withan embodiment of the present technology.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional top view of the storage facility of FIGS.1A-1C taken substantially along line 2-2 in FIG. 1B.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional, side elevation view of the storage facilityof FIGS. 1A-1C taken substantially along line 3-3 in FIG. 1B.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional end view of the storage facility of FIGS.1A-1C taken substantially along line 4-4 in FIG. 1A.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional top view of the storage facility of FIGS.1A-1C taken substantially along line 5-5 in FIG. 1B.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged, cross-sectional view of a side wall and roofportion of the storage facility of FIGS. 1A-1C, taken from FIG. 4.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged, cross-sectional view of a portion of theceiling-to-side wall region of FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged, cross-sectional end view taken substantiallyalong line 8-8 in FIG. 7, illustrating a storage facility side wallportion configured in accordance with an embodiment of the presenttechnology.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a facility fan cooling systemconfigured in accordance with an embodiment of the present technology.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following disclosure describes various embodiments of facilities forstoring large quantities of potatoes, other vegetables, and/or othercrops under favorable conditions. Certain details are set forth in thefollowing description and in FIGS. 1-9 to provide a thoroughunderstanding of various embodiments of the present technology. In otherinstances, well-known structures, materials, operations and/or systemsoften associated with tuber (e.g., potato) storage facilities, othertypes of agricultural product storage facilities, building construction,etc. are not shown or described in detail in the following disclosure toavoid unnecessarily obscuring the description of the various embodimentsof the technology. Those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize,however, that the present technology can be practiced without one ormore of the details set forth herein, or with other structures, methods,components, and so forth.

The accompanying Figures depict embodiments of the present technologyand are not intended to be limiting of its scope. The sizes of variousdepicted elements are not necessarily drawn to scale, and these variouselements may be arbitrarily enlarged to improve legibility. Componentdetails may be abstracted in the Figures to exclude details such asposition of components and certain precise connections between suchcomponents when such details are unnecessary for a completeunderstanding of how to make and use the invention.

Many of the details, dimensions, angles and other features shown in theFigures are merely illustrative of particular embodiments of thedisclosure. Accordingly, other embodiments can have other details,dimensions, angles and features without departing from the spirit orscope of the present invention. In addition, those of ordinary skill inthe art will appreciate that further embodiments of the invention can bepracticed without several of the details described below.

In the Figures, identical reference numbers identify identical, or atleast generally similar, elements. To facilitate the discussion of anyparticular element, the most significant digit or digits of anyreference number refers to the Figure in which that element is firstintroduced. For example, element 110 is first introduced and discussedwith reference to FIG. 1.

FIGS. 1A, 1B and 1C are side, front and rear elevation views,respectively of a storage facility 100 configured in accordance with anembodiment of the present technology. The storage facility 100 can beused to store potatoes and other tubers, onions, carrots, and othertypes of agricultural products, crops, produce etc. Although the storagefacility 100 is described herein in the context of a potato storagefacility, those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that thestorage facility 100 and various structural and functional aspectsthereof can also be used to advantageously store other tubers,vegetables, crops and/or produce. Accordingly, the technology disclosedherein is not limited to potato storage facilities unless specificallyindicated as such, and in general is equally applicable to other cropstorage facilities.

Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B together, in the illustrated embodiment thestorage facility 100 includes a fan house 102 positioned toward a frontportion of a potato storage area 110. The fan house 102 includes aplurality of openings or vents, such as air inlets 106 (identifiedindividually as air inlets 106 a-h) formed in an exterior front wall112. Each of the air inlets 106 can be selectively opened or closed by acorresponding door 108 (identified individually as inlet doors 108 a-h).As described in greater detail below, the positions of the doors 108relative to the corresponding openings 106 can be adjusted (e.g.,individually adjusted) as desired to control the amount of outside airflowing into the storage facility 100 via the fan house 102. The fanhouse 102 can also include two smaller doors 116 toward opposite sidesto enable persons to enter and exit the adjacent fan rooms, and eachside of the storage area 110 can include a larger door 104 (e.g., alarge roll up door) to allow trucks and other vehicles (not shown) totransport large quantities of potatoes to and/or from the adjacentstorage bay.

Referring next to FIGS. 1A and 1C together, the storage facility 100 caninclude an exterior rear wall 114 having an array of openings, vents orapertures, such as air outlets 120 (identified individually as airoutlets 120 a-x). Each of the air outlets 120 can include acorresponding door 122 or other adjustable closure device (identifiedindividually as doors 122 a-x) that can be used to control the flow ofair out of the storage facility 110. The rear wall 114 can additionallyinclude two large doors 118 for vehicle access that are similar instructure and function to the large doors 104 (FIG. 1B) at the front ofthe storage area 110.

In the illustrated embodiment the storage facility 100 can bemanufactured using conventional materials and techniques known in theart for constructing agricultural product storage facilities. Suchmaterials and techniques can include, for example, welded and fastenedsteel framing erected on a concrete pad or foundation, and covered withrelatively thin sheet metal siding and roof panels (e.g., corrugated orformed sheet metal siding and roof panels). In the illustratedembodiment, the storage facility 100 can have a length L from the frontwall 112 to the rear wall 114 of from about 150 feet to about 500 feetor more, or from about 250 feet to about 450 feet, or about 390 feet.The storage facility 100 can have a height H from the ground to a roofridge line 124 of from about 20 feet to about 50 feet, or from about 25feet to about 40 feet, or about 37 feet. The storage facility 100 canhave a width W from a right or first exterior side wall 126 a to a leftor second exterior side wall 126 b of from about 60 feet to about 300feet, or from about 100 feet to about 200 feet, or about 155 feet. Inother embodiments, the storage facility 100 and various embodimentsthereof can have other suitable shapes and sizes, and can be constructedfrom other suitable materials and techniques known in the art withoutdeparting from the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional top view taken along line 2-2 in FIG. 1Bjust above mezzanine decks 240 (identified individually as a right orfirst mezzanine deck 240 a and a left or second mezzanine deck 240 b).In the illustrated embodiment, the storage facility 100 includes acentral partition wall 230 extending upwardly from the buildingfoundation to at least proximate the roof ridge line 124 (FIG. 1C). Inthis embodiment, the storage facility 100 is generally symmetrical aboutthe central partition wall 230, with the central partition wall 230dividing the fan house 102 into two adjacent fan rooms (identifiedindividually as a right or first fan room 103 a and a left or second fanroom 103 b), and the potato storage area 110 into two adjacent potatostorage bays (identified individually as a right or first storage bay111 a and a left or second storage bay 111 b). In operation, the firstfan room 103 a provides air (e.g., cool and/or humid air) to the firststorage bay 111 a, and the second fan room 103 b provides air (e.g.,cool and/or humid air) to the second storage bay 111 b. For ease ofreference and understanding, portions of the following descriptiondescribe the various structures and functions of the storage facility100 from the perspective of the first fan room 103 a and the firstpotato storage bay 111 a. It should be understood, however, that becauseof the symmetry of the illustrated embodiment the description of thesestructures and functions applies equally well to the second fan room 103b and the second storage bay 111 b on the opposite side of the partitionwall 230. In other embodiments, however, storage facilities configuredin accordance with the present technology can be unsymmetrical, and/orthey can have only a single potato storage bay or more than 2 storagebays. Accordingly, the technology disclosed herein is not limited tosymmetrical storage facilities.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional side elevation view taken along line 3-3 inFIG. 1B. Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3 together, a plurality of air movers242 draw outside air (indicated by the arrows 244) into the fan room 103a through the inlets 106 a-d and then through an air cooler 238. In theillustrated embodiment, the air movers 242 can be conventional fansknown to those of ordinary skill in the art and suitable for industrialapplications, such as electric motor-driven axial fans. In otherembodiments, other types of air movers (e.g., centrifugal fans,crossflow fans, etc.) can be used to draw air into the fan room 103 avia the inlets 106 a-d. The air cooler 238 can be any type of suitableair cooler known in the art including, for example, an evaporative watercooler (e.g., a wet air cooler, “swamp cooler,” etc.), a refrigerantcycle air conditioner, or other conventional air cooling/conditioningsystem known to those of skill in the art for use in such facilities. Insome embodiments, the air cooler 238 is an evaporative water cooler thatincreases the moisture content in the air. As described in greaterdetail below, the moist air can advantageously reduce dehydration andshrinkage of tubers and other crops stored in the facility 100.

The air movers 242 move the air from each of the respective fan rooms103 into a corresponding air plenum 232 (identified as a right or firstair plenum 232 a and a left or second air plenum 232 b) as indicated bythe arrows 245. In some embodiments, the facility 100 can also includeangled side wall portions 233 a, b (FIG. 2) extending between each ofthe fan rooms 103 and the respective plenum side walls 234 to provide asmooth transition for air flowing from the fan rooms 103 into therespective air plenums 232. Each of the air plenums 232 is formed by thecentral partition wall 230 on one side, a corresponding plenum side wall234 a, b on the opposite side, and a plenum ceiling or top wall 352 a, b(FIG. 3) that extends beneath the respective mezzanine deck 240. In theillustrated embodiment, each of the mezzanine decks 240 provides aceiling over the respective fan room 103 as well as a walkway above theair plenums 232 that extends adjacent to the respective storage bay 111.Hand/guide rails 341 can be provided along the edges of the mezzaninedecks as shown in FIG. 3 for personnel safety.

In one aspect of the illustrated embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the plenumtop wall 352 a is angled or sloped downwardly as it extends away fromthe fan room 103 a toward the rear facility wall 114. Without wishing tobe bound by theory, reducing the cross-sectional area of the air plenum232 a (by, e.g., tapering the air plenum 232 a) as it extends away fromthe fan house 102 in the manner shown can help maintain the flow rateand pressure of the air 244 at a relatively constant level throughoutthe plenum 232 a. Maintaining the flow rate and pressure can help ensurethat all the ducts 236 receive relatively equal flows of cooling air,such that the duct 236 j positioned furthest from the fan house 102 canreceive a substantially similar amount of conditioned air as the duct236 a positioned closest to the fan house 102. In other embodiments,however, storage facilities configured in accordance with the presenttechnology can have air plenums with constant, or at least generallyconstant, cross-sectional areas and/or other shapes.

The air flowing through each of the plenums 232 flows into a series ofpipes or ducts 236 (identified individually as ducts 236 a-j in thefirst storage bay 111 a, and ducts 236 i-s in the second storage bay 111b) through corresponding openings in the plenum side walls 234. Theducts 236 extend transversely across each of the potato storage bays 111from the plenum side wall 234 to at least proximate the exterior sidewall 126. Each of the ducts 236 can include a plurality of apertures oropenings for distributing the air received from the respective plenum232 under the potatoes (not shown) piled thereon. The ducts 236 can alsobe used to distribute and apply substances, such as sprout inhibitingsubstances, etc., onto the potatoes using various methods and systemsknown in the art.

Referring again to FIG. 3, after the cooling air (identified by thearrows 344) has flowed upwardly through the potato pile, it is drawninto a series of air movers 354 a-l positioned in corresponding openings355 a-l in a soffit or ceiling panel 350 that extends above themezzanine deck 240 a. In the illustrated embodiment, the air movers 354are relatively evenly spaced and distributed along the length of themezzanine ceiling panel 350, and are individually positioned in baysbetween ceiling beams 360 a-k. The ceiling beams 360 extend outwardlyfrom the central partition wall 230 toward the side wall 126 andsupport, among other things, an exterior roof panel 356 and an interiorroof panel 358. As described in greater detail below with reference to,e.g., FIGS. 4 and 5, the ceiling beams 360 divide the space between theinterior roof panel 358 and the ceiling panel 350 into a series ofenclosed spaces or ceiling plenums 362 that extend outwardly across theceiling region of the storage bay 111 a. Each of the individual ceilingplenums 362 receives air from the individual air mover 354 positioned inthat particular ceiling bay.

The mezzanine deck 240 can additionally include a series ofrecirculation air openings or vents 206 a-h (FIG. 2) adjacent to thefront wall 112. When the recirculation vents 206 are open or at leastpartially open, the air movers 242 draw air from the mezzanine down intothe fan rooms 103. In the illustrated embodiment, each of therecirculation vents 206 is operably aligned with one of the air inlets106 and one of the inlet doors 108. In operation, the inlet doors 108can be manually or automatically rotated or moved by a suitablemechanism known in the art between a first position (i.e., an upperposition) in which the door 108 fully closes the corresponding vent 206and opens the corresponding air inlet 106, a second position (i.e., alower position) in which the door 108 opens the vent 206 and fullycloses the inlet 106, and essentially any desired position in betweenthe first and second positions. Fully opening, for example, the vent 206c and thereby closing the corresponding air inlet 106 c increases therecirculation of air (indicated by arrows 346) through the fan room 103a. Conversely, fully closing the vent 206 c and thereby fully openingthe air inlet 106 c increases the flow of outside air into the fan room103 a. Additionally, the position of the inlet door 108 c can also beadjusted to any point in between these two positions to permit air toflow into the fan room 103 a via both the inlet 106 c and the vent 206c. The amount of recirculation air drawn into the fan room 103 a canalso be varied, adjusted and/or balanced depending on how many of theair movers 354 on the mezzanine ceiling panel 350 are operational and atwhat speed, how many of the air movers 242 are operational and at whatspeed, and/or the extent to which the recirculation vents 106 areopened.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional front elevation view taken along line 4-4 inFIG. 1A, and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional top view taken along line 5-5in FIG. 1B just above the ceiling panel 350. Referring first to FIG. 4,in the illustrated embodiment the potato storage bay 111 a extendslaterally from the plenum side wall 234 a on one side to the interiorside wall 462 a on the other side. Conditioned air (e.g., cool and humidair) flowing in the air plenum 232 a flows into the ducts 236 a-j (asindicated by arrow 245). As the air (indicated now by arrows 344) flowsupwardly through a potato pile 460, the air absorbs heat generated bythe potatoes and provides moisture. As a result, the potatoes are keptcool and sufficiently hydrated. The air collecting above the potato pile460, however, may have warmed and may still have relatively highmoisture content. This air (indicated by arrows 345) is drawn away frompotato pile 460 by the air movers 354 a-l and introduced into theceiling plenums 362 a-l via the openings 355 a-l (see also FIG. 3). Asshown in FIGS. 4 and 5, once in the plenums 362, the air flows outwardlyaway from the central partition wall 230 toward the side wall 126 a. Asdescribed in greater detail below with reference to, e.g., FIGS. 6-8,once the air reaches the side wall 126 a, a portion of the air flowsdownwardly along an interior side wall 462 a before being exhausted froma lower edge portion 466 of the side wall 462 a.

One advantage of the embodiment of the potato storage facility describedabove is that the relatively warm moist air collecting above the potatopile 460 is drawn into the ceiling plenums 362. As a result, this airwarms the ceiling panel 350 above the dew point of the air remaining inthe storage bay 111 a above the potato pile 460. Keeping the temperatureof the ceiling panel 350 above the dew point reduces or eliminates theformation of moisture on the underside of the ceiling panel 350, whichcould otherwise collect and drip down onto the potato pile 460 resultingin rot. Moreover, using warm air from the potatoes to warm the lowerceiling panels 350 can avoid the fuel and/or electricity cost associatedwith using an industrial air heater for this purpose.

A further advantage of this embodiment is that the inner roof panel 358may be at a temperature below the dew point of the air in the ceilingplenums 362 because of the proximity of the roof panel 358 to theoutside air. If this is the case, then any water condensation from theair in the ceiling plenums 362 will collect on the upper surface of theceiling panel 350 and not drip down onto the potato pile 460. Moreover,in some embodiments such as the illustrated embodiment, the ceilingpanel 350 can slope downwardly as it extends outwardly toward theinterior side wall 462 a, causing this water to flow outwardly on theupper surface of the ceiling panel 350 toward the interior side wall 462a, where it can be redirected away from the potatoes with a suitablestructure (e.g., a gutter; not shown in FIG. 4). Redirecting this wateraway from the potatoes can reduce product losses due to rot.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged, cross-sectional view of a side wall and roofportion of the storage facility 100 taken from FIG. 4. An outer endportion of the roof beam 360 b is supported by a corresponding supportcolumn 468 b. A plurality of roof purlins 670 extend transversely acrossan upper surface of the roof beam 360 b and the adjacent roof beams 360,thereby providing support the exterior roof panel 356. The inner roofpanel 358 is attached to the underside of the purlins 670 adjacent tothe upper surface of the roof beams 360. In the illustrated embodiment,the inner and exterior roof panels 358 and 356 can be sheet metalpanels, such as commercially available corrugated steel panels ofvarious gages. For example, in various embodiments the roof panel 356can be a PBR 26-gage steel panel, the inner roof panel 358 can be anHR-36 29-gage steel panel, and the ceiling panel 350 can also be anHR-36 29-gage steel panel. In other embodiments, the storage facility100 can use other materials for the various ceiling and roof panelsdescribed herein.

A non-permeable or at least substantially non-permeable seal layer 672 acan be applied to an upper side surface of the inner roof panel 358 toprevent or at least inhibit water leakage through joints and fastenerholes therein. A seal layer 672 b of the same or similar material canalso be applied to an upper side surface of the ceiling panel 350 toprevent or at least reduce similar leaks. The seal layers 672 can bemade from various types of suitable liners, membranes and fabrics knownin the art, including a commercially available Uvmax®-coated fabricknown as Simple Saver Fabric and provided by Thermal Design, Inc. ofStoughton, Wis. 53589. Simple Saver Fabric is a proprietary woven,high-density polyethylene fabric. In other embodiments, other suitablepermeable and semi-permeable membranes can be used as the ceiling layers672. Additionally, a suitable insulation material 674, such as asuitable fiberglass insulation having an R value of R38, can be used tofill, or at least approximately fill the cavities between the inner roofpanel 358 and the exterior roof panel 356 to thermally insulate thestorage facility 100.

A plurality of wall purlins 682 extend transversely across the outersurface of the support column 468 b and the adjacent columns 468. Anexterior side wall panel 676 is attached to the outer side of thepurlins 682, and an inner side wall panel 680 is similarly attached tothe inner side of the purlins 682 between adjacent support columns 468.In the illustrated embodiment, the inner and exterior side wall panels680 and 676 can be sheet metal panels, such as commercially availablecorrugated steel panels of various gages. For example, in variousembodiments the exterior side wall panel 676 can be a PBR 26-gage steelpanel, and the inner side wall panel 680 can be an HR-36 29-gage steelpanel. In other embodiments, the storage facility 100 can use othermaterials for the various wall panels described herein.

As described above with reference to the roof of the storage facility100, a seal layer 672 c can be applied to an outer-facing surface of theinner side wall panel 680. The seal layer 672 c can be at leastgenerally similar in structure and function to the seal layers 672 a and672 b described above. In addition, the insulation 674 described abovecan also be installed in the side wall cavities between the inner sidewall panel 680 and the exterior side wall panel 676. The combination ofthe insulation 674 and the seal layers 672 on the roof and the sidewalls of the storage facility 100 can thermally insulate the storagefacility 100 to prevent or at least reduce thermal energy losses.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged, cross-sectional view of a portion of theroof-to-side wall region of FIG. 6. FIG. 8 is an enlargedcross-sectional edge view taken substantially along line 8-8 in FIG. 7.Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8 together, as the air (indicated by the arrows345) flows outwardly in the roof plenum 362 a and approaches the sidewall 126 a, a portion of the air flows downwardly into open channels 896formed in the inner side wall panel 680. In the illustrated embodiment,the open channels 896 are formed by the corrugations of the inner sidewall panel 680. This air flows downwardly along the length of the innerside wall panel 680 and exits along a lower edge portion 694 of theinner side wall panel 680 proximate to a foundation 696 (FIG. 6) of thestorage facility 100. This warm air can advantageously warm the innerside wall panel 680, thereby preventing or at least reducing theformation of condensation on the side wall panel 680 which, in manycases, will be in direct contact with the stored potatoes. Thisreduction in water can further reduce the onset of potato rot along withthe attendant lower storage yields.

Returning to FIG. 7, in a further aspect of this embodiment, a gutter690 or other similar or suitable water duct or collector can extendhorizontally (or at least generally horizontally) along an underside ofthe roof beams 360 just inboard of the support columns 468. The gutter690 collects water (indicated by the arrows 792) that flows off of theupper side of the ceiling panel 350 from condensation in the ceilingplenums 362. This water can then be directed away from the gutter 690by, e.g., suitable drainpipes 692 located at a series of locations alongthe side wall of the storage facility 100. For example, in oneembodiment, an individual drainpipe 692 can be attached to the gutter690 at each of the support columns 468 and configured to direct thewater collected in the gutter 690 downward along the side wall towardthe facility foundation 696 (FIG. 6). This water can then be drainedaway from the facility 100, or recycled for increasing the humidity ofcooling air used in the facility.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram illustrating a facility fan cooling system900 configured in accordance with an embodiment of the presenttechnology. In the illustrated embodiment, the fan cooling system 900can be used to cool a plurality of fan motors 902 a-d (e.g., electricfan motors). The fan motors 902 can be used to drive, for example, theair movers 242 described above with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. Thecooling system 900 includes an inlet manifold 908 having a series ofinlet tracks or ducts 910 a-d. Each of the inlet ducts 910 is coupled influid communication with a corresponding cooling shroud 906 a-d. Eachshroud 906 extends around and essentially encloses a corresponding fanmotor 902 a-d, and each of the fan motors 902 drives a corresponding oneof the air movers 242. Each of the shrouds 906 is also in fluidcommunication with a corresponding outlet duct 914 a-d, and each of theoutlet ducts 914 is in fluid communication with an outlet manifold 912.

An air mover 916 (e.g., a blower, fan, etc.) is positioned in fluidcommunication with the outlet manifold 912 and configured to move airfrom the outlet manifold 912 into a series of distribution ducts 918a-c. Each of the ducts 918 can be connected in fluid communication to aparticular location or system to make use of the warm air coming fromthe fan motor cooling shrouds 906. For example, the first duct 918 a canbe configured to exhaust the warm air outside the storage facility 100.The second duct 918 b can be connected in fluid communication to, forexample, a refrigeration coil (e.g., a refrigeration coil associatedwith the air cooler 238 of FIG. 2) to prevent ice buildup on the coil.The third duct 918 c can be connected in fluid communication to, forexample, one or more ceiling cavities in the storage facility 100 towarm the ceiling panels or otherwise advantageously utilize the warm airto reduce water formation on the stored crop (e.g., potatoes). Moreover,each of the distribution ducts 918 can include a corresponding damper orvalve 920 that can be automatically or manually adjusted to control theflow of warm exhaust air to the particular location.

When the fan motors 902 are operating, the air mover 916 circulatescooling air (e.g., outside air) through each of the motor shrouds 906.The outside air absorbs heat from the motors 902 and then flows into theoutlet manifold 912 via the corresponding outlet ducts 914. As discussedabove, the warmed air can then be put to one or more advantageous usesvia the distribution ducts 918.

Without the cooling system 900, heat generated by the fan motors 902would be absorbed by the air moving through the air movers 242, therebywarming the air. If an air cooler (e.g., the air cooler 238 of FIGS. 2and 3) is positioned upstream of the air movers 242, the air cooler 238has to expend additional energy to account for this additional heat. Oneadvantage of the cooling system 900, however, is that the fan motors 902have an independent cooling system. As a result, the fan motors 902 donot add a significant amount of heat to the air flowing through the airmovers 242, and the air cooler 238 is able to operate at a lower energylevel than would otherwise be required.

References throughout the foregoing description to features, advantages,or similar language do not imply that all of the features and advantagesthat may be realized with the present technology should be or are in anysingle embodiment of the invention. Rather, language referring to thefeatures and advantages is understood to mean that a specific feature,advantage, or characteristic described in connection with an embodimentis included in at least one embodiment of the present technology. Thus,discussion of the features and advantages, and similar language,throughout this specification may, but do not necessarily, refer to thesame embodiment.

The described features, advantages, and characteristics of the presenttechnology may be combined in any suitable manner in one or moreembodiments. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize that thepresent technology can be practiced without one or more of the specificfeatures or advantages of a particular embodiment. In other instances,additional features and advantages may be recognized in certainembodiments that may not be present in all embodiments of the presenttechnology.

Any patents and applications and other references noted above, includingany that may be listed in accompanying filing papers, are incorporatedherein by reference. Aspects of the invention can be modified, ifnecessary, to employ the systems, functions, and concepts of the variousreferences described above to provide yet further implementations of theinvention.

The above Detailed Description of examples and embodiments of theinvention is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention tothe precise form disclosed above. While specific examples for theinvention are described above for illustrative purposes, variousequivalent modifications are possible within the scope of the invention,as those skilled in the relevant art will recognize. Some alternativeimplementations of the invention may include not only additionalelements to those implementations noted above, but also may includefewer elements. Further any specific numbers noted herein are onlyexamples: alternative implementations may employ differing values orranges.

While the above description describes various embodiments of theinvention and the best mode contemplated, regardless how detailed theabove text, the invention can be practiced in many ways. Details of thesystem may vary considerably in its specific implementation, while stillbeing encompassed by the present disclosure. As noted above, particularterminology used when describing certain features or aspects of theinvention should not be taken to imply that the terminology is beingredefined herein to be restricted to any specific characteristics,features, or aspects of the invention with which that terminology isassociated. In general, the terms used in the following claims shouldnot be construed to limit the invention to the specific examplesdisclosed in the specification, unless the above Detailed Descriptionsection explicitly defines such terms. Accordingly, the actual scope ofthe invention encompasses not only the disclosed examples, but also allequivalent ways of practicing or implementing the invention under theclaims.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that specific embodiments ofthe invention have been described herein for purposes of illustration,but that various modifications may be made without deviating from thespirit and scope of the various embodiments of the invention. Further,while various advantages associated with certain embodiments of theinvention have been described above in the context of those embodiments,other embodiments may also exhibit such advantages, and not allembodiments need necessarily exhibit such advantages to fall within thescope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not limited,except as by the appended claims.

Although certain aspects of the invention are presented below in certainclaim forms, the applicant contemplates the various aspects of theinvention in any number of claim forms. Accordingly, the applicantreserves the right to pursue additional claims after filing thisapplication to pursue such additional claim forms, in either thisapplication or in a continuing application.

We claim:
 1. A potato storage facility comprising: a potato storage bay;an air plenum extending adjacent the potato storage bay; at least oneair inlet configured to receive air from outside the potato storagefacility; at least a first air mover configured to move the air from theair inlet through the air plenum, wherein the air plenum has a firstcross-sectional area toward a first end portion that receives air fromthe first air mover, and a second cross-sectional area, less than thefirst cross-sectional area, toward a second end portion that isdownstream from the first end portion; a plurality of ventilation ductsextending across a floor portion of the potato storage bay, wherein eachof the ventilation ducts is configured to receive a portion of the airflowing through the air plenum, and wherein each of the ventilationducts includes a plurality of apertures for flowing the air upwardlythrough a pile of potatoes disposed thereon; a ceiling panel disposeddirectly above the potato storage bay; and at least a second air moverconfigured to circulate at least a portion of the air flowing upwardlythrough the pile of potatoes through an air passage extending above theceiling panel.
 2. The potato storage facility of claim 1 wherein the airplenum is tapered.
 3. The potato storage facility of claim 1, furthercomprising an exterior roof panel, wherein the exterior roof panelextends above the air passage.
 4. The potato storage facility of claim1, further comprising: an interior wall; and an outer wall spaced apartfrom the interior wall, wherein the ceiling panel slopes downwardly fromthe interior wall toward the outer wall.
 5. The potato storage facilityof claim 1, further comprising an interior surface above and spacedapart from the ceiling panel, wherein the interior surface has atemperature less than a dew point of the air moving through the airpassage extending above the ceiling panel.
 6. The potato storagefacility of claim 1 wherein the ceiling panel includes a lower surfacefacing toward the potato storage bay and an upper surface facing awayfrom the potato storage bay, and wherein the potato storage facilityfurther comprises a gutter configured to receive water condensationflowing off the upper surface of the ceiling panel.
 7. A potato storagefacility comprising: a potato storage bay; an air plenum extendingadjacent to the potato storage bay; at least one air inlet configured toreceive air from outside the potato storage facility; at least a firstair mover configured to move the air from the air inlet through the airplenum; a plurality of ventilation ducts extending across a floorportion of the potato storage bay, wherein each of the ventilation ductsis configured to receive a portion of the air flowing through the airplenum, and wherein each of the ventilation ducts includes a pluralityof apertures for flowing the air upwardly through a pile of potatoesdisposed thereon; a ceiling panel disposed directly above the potatostorage bay; and at least a second air mover configured to circulate atleast a portion of the air flowing upwardly through the pile of potatoesthrough a second air plenum extending above the ceiling panel, whereinthe air plenum is a first air plenum, wherein the air passage is asecond air plenum, and wherein the ceiling panel forms a bottom wall ofthe second air plenum.
 8. The potato storage facility of claim 7 whereinthe potato storage bay has a width extending from a first side wall to asecond side wall, and wherein the at least second air mover isconfigured to move the air received from the potato storage bay acrossthe width of the potato storage bay in the second plenum.
 9. The potatostorage facility of claim 7, further comprising an exterior roof panel,wherein the exterior roof panel forms an upper boundary of the secondair plenum.
 10. The potato storage facility of claim 7 wherein thebottom wall of the second plenum includes a lower surface facing towardthe potato storage bay and an upper surface facing away from the potatostorage bay, and wherein the potato storage facility further comprises agutter configured to receive water condensation flowing off the uppersurface of the bottom wall of the second plenum.
 11. The potato storagefacility of claim 7, further comprising: an exterior side wall; and aninterior side wall, wherein the potato storage bay extends between theinterior side wall toward the exterior side wall, and wherein the atleast second air mover is positioned toward the interior side wall andconfigured to move the air received from the potato storage bay towardthe exterior side wall.
 12. The potato storage facility of claim 11,further comprising an interior gutter extending proximate an edgeportion of the bottom wall of the second plenum and adjacent theexterior side wall, wherein the gutter is configured to receive waterfrom condensation of the air flowing through the second plenum.
 13. Thepotato storage facility of claim 7, further comprising an exterior sidewall having an interior panel adjacent the potato storage bay, whereinthe interior panel includes a plurality of air channels configured toreceive at least a portion of the air moving through the second plenum.14. The potato storage facility of claim 7, further comprising aninterior panel defining a lateral boundary of the potato storage bay,wherein the interior panel includes a plurality of air channels havingupper end portions spaced apart from lower end portions, wherein theupper end portions are configured to receive at least a portion of theair moving through the second plenum.
 15. The potato storage facility ofclaim 14 wherein the lower end portions are configured to exhaust theair toward a floor of the potato storage facility.
 16. The potatostorage facility of claim 7 wherein the first air plenum has a firstcross-sectional area toward a first end portion that receives air fromthe first air mover, and a second cross-sectional area, less than thefirst cross-sectional area, toward a second end portion that isdownstream from the first end portion.
 17. The potato storage facilityof claim 7 wherein the first air plenum is tapered.
 18. A method ofstoring a pile of potatoes in a storage facility, the method comprising:receiving air from outside the storage facility; flowing the air throughthe pile of potatoes stored in the storage facility; receiving at leasta portion of the air after the air has flowed through the pile ofpotatoes; moving the air received from the pile of potatoes through aplenum extending adjacent to a ceiling panel extending over the pile ofpotatoes; collecting water from condensation in the plenum; anddirecting the water away from the pile of potatoes.
 19. The method ofclaim 18 wherein the pile of potatoes is disposed in a potato storagebay having a first side wall spaced apart from a second side wall, andwherein moving the air received from the pile of potatoes includesflowing the air over the ceiling panel from proximate the first sidewall to proximate the second side wall.
 20. The method of claim 18,further comprising cooling the air received from outside the storagefacility before flowing it upwardly through the pile of potatoes. 21.The method of claim 18, further comprising increasing the moisturecontent of the air received from outside the storage facility beforeflowing it upwardly through the pile of potatoes.
 22. The method ofclaim 18, further comprising increasing the moisture content of the airreceived from outside the storage facility using at least a portion ofthe water collected from condensation in the plenum.